Procurement News, Opinions and Latest Market Leads

With the Living Wage in London and Scotland rising, could paying the Living Wage actually boost your chances of winning work with the Government? Under recent rules coming into force in Scotland, firms bidding for public sector contracts will be expected to pay employees the Living Wage. The rules will also ban the exploitative use of […]

In response to UK government procurement reform, BiP Solutions has decided to give suppliers a helping hand through the release of the Ultimate Guide to Winning Government Contracts. Many businesses are put off public sector procurement, thinking it is too complex and resource heavy or that only large organisations win government business. Even companies that […]

With the UK adoption of the EU Public Contract Regulations (in February 2015) more focus has been put on ethical recruitment. Now public sector buyers can request employee checks not only of the bidding company’s employees, but also those of its  supply chain (at the pre-tender stage). Here the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo) […]

Government construction contracts have changed thanks to new BIM Compliance requirements. Building Information Models (BIM) are shared information hubs that exist to hold documents about a building’s infrastructure during its lifecycle (the time it is in use). Here Morgan Sindall Professional Services Principal Architect and BIM Consultant Trevor Strahan tells BiP reporter Julie Shennan how […]

The Scottish Government’s 2016-17 Draft Budget has pledged around £4 billion infrastructure investment over the next year. This investment will be spent on house building, transport and digital links, among other projects. This won’t just benefit those in construction; the investment will boost local and international businesses that rely on Scottish infrastructure for trade, logistics […]

Britain has overtaken the USA as one of the best places in the world to do business, according to a new report. The announcement, by the World Bank’s annual Doing Business Report, named the UK as the top country in the G7 for ease of doing business, ahead of the USA, Canada, Japan, Germany and […]

At the Conservative Party Conference 2015 Prime Minister David Cameron set out an ambitious agenda to make Britain the global success story of the 21st Century. So what exactly are the Conservative Party’s plans for the coming Parliament? The economy, housing and defence were the key targets for David Cameron in his first address to […]

The Scottish Government has announced that fair and sustainable procurement is at the heart of their policies to improve Scotland and boost economic recovery. Speaking at the Scottish Government’s 11th National Procurement Conference as part of Procurex Scotland Live 2015, Keith Brown, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities said that procurement is a key […]

A recent poll of UK businesses has revealed that firms are split over the crucial issue of the UK’s continued EU membership. The poll, undertaken by the Federation of Small Businesses on 6000 of its members, showed that overall, 47% of firms would vote to remain in the EU, with 41% voting to leave and […]

Jeremy Corbyn, the once rank outsider for the position of UK Labour Leader, has won his party’s leadership contest by a landslide, gaining almost 60% of members’ votes. The victory could mean a drastic change in Labour policy and a fundamental shift in the UK political landscape over the coming years. Caught in the middle […]

Exclusive to Tracker, we’ve created a unique online course to help guide you through the procurement process from finding an opportunity to winning the contract. If you’re ready to win more business with Government, join the course today. The public sector is the UK’s single largest marketplace and spends approximately £242 billion on the direct […]

The UK Government has announced further details around its plans to create 3 million new apprentices by 2020. With apprenticeships becoming a major priority, this Tracker blog looks at whether making apprentices a focus of your business strategy could help you win with the Government. The apprenticeship drive During the Summer Budget, the Chancellor introduced […]

After the first batch of EU Procurement Rules were made law in February, the UK Government is seeking public consultation on the implementation of the next raft of EU regulations. The Crown Commercial Service and Cabinet Office are consulting on two new regulations to further simplify the procurement process, the utilities contracts consultation and the […]

David Cameron recently embarked on a four-day tour of south-east Asia with the aim of agreeing business deals between the UK and Asia. The deals, thought to be worth more than £750m, are part of the Prime Minister’s efforts to boost export and trade between the regions. Mr Cameron, accompanied by a group of 31 […]

Following the Summer Budget announced on 8 July, Chancellor George Osborne has announced the first step in the upcoming Spending Review 2015. The Spending Review will be published in full on 25 November, however before then public sector departments will be asked to examine their processes, explain their expenditure and, in some cases, streamline their […]

The first Conservative Budget in 19 years was, unsurprisingly, Mr Osborne’s opportunity to exert the influence of the new Government in areas such as welfare, infrastructure and, maybe most significantly, business. In a Budget full of announcements which will have massive implications for businesses across the UK, Tracker examines the measures announced and explains which […]

We can help you write tenders as part of our packages, start today. Win Tenders Today You’ve found a great opportunity for your business. You’ve got a product or service that can really deliver what the buyer needs. Everything is falling into place. But you still need to write a tender response before you win […]

[BREAKING]: This story has been updated following the publication of the Airport Commission recommendations. Read on for more details! On Wednesday 1 July, the Airports Commission will deliver a report on the long battle surrounding London airport expansion. Amid speculation that the report will favour expansion at Heathrow but be inconclusive, this blog from Tracker […]

The UK construction sector is growing. According to the Office of National Statistics, the construction industry actually performed 0.9% better than previously anticipated. As a result of this strong performance, the overall economy grew by 0.4% rather than the 0.3% the ONS previously expected. With the industry growing, Tracker explains why now if the perfect […]

Prime Minister David Cameron has backed down on plans to hold the proposed EU Referendum on 5 May 2016, the same date as the Scottish Parliament and the London Mayoral election. Although no firm date has been set, it is clear that plans are currently underway to hold the referendum as quickly as possible, with […]